Freedom of the Press

The question of the First Amendment comes up in this memoir most directly in the battles Kay Graham's Washington Post engages in with the Nixon administration over the publishing the Pentagon Papers and investigating the White House's participation in the Watergate break-in. In the former, the Post picks up publication when the Justice Department obtains an injunction against the New York Times, which first obtains the Papers. She follows the legal arguments, pointing out the legal precedents set that endanger the public's right to information. In the Watergate affair, Graham shows how a ruthless and paranoid clique can use the vast power of the federal government to pressure publishers that block their agenda (exemplified in the FCC challenges to the Washington Post Company's broadcast stations). Less dramatic cases also abound. The Post has a strict policy of not formally endorsing presidential candidates, even when its...